#StandForAsians rally draws hundreds in San Mateo with 7th grader leading the charge
SAN MATEO, Calif. (KGO) -- "I was like, whoa, this is not ok, why is this happening in our community?' And I told my mom, I have to do something about this," said Ashlyn So, reacting the recent spate of violence against Asian.
"She said, mommy, this is not right, I want to do a march, I've never done this before, but hey let's figure this out we can do this," said Angelu Wu, her mom.
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So she and her mom rallied their community over social media, and by Saturday afternoon, hundreds attended her rallying calling awareness to violence against the Asian community.
The rally is not the first of its kind in the Bay Area, this year. Similar gatherings have been organized in Oakland and San Francisco.
Across the nation, an even louder rally cry, including from prominent Asian Americans.
VIDEO: Volunteers arm Oakland Chinatown business owners with air horns for safety
Actor Daniel Dae Kim has been spreading awareness on social media through #stopasianhate. The co-founder of non-profit Gold House, a collective of Asian leaders, has also been working to share resources.
"The rally cry is not just to act, it's not just to post on social media, or donate or whatever. It's to do it together implicitly. So, buying from black businesses and gold businesses, speaking up for gold folks, and Latino folks, so forth, and so on," said Bing Chen who's organizing another event next week, bringing together Asian leaders across industries.
RELATED: Hundreds rally in SF to condemn violence against Asian-American community
In San Mateo, Ashlyn So was surrounded by her friends, but also older generations inspired by her actions.
"We're going to stop Asians from being targeted," she said.
"The reality is, this is going to take generations. But the good news is generations are within sight. And in the case of the seventh grader, it sounds like they are our children already," said Chen.
